I hope this page will help you to deal with each of
these obstacles successfully. Everything on here is based on my own
experience -- and I've had migraines since September 1964, so I've
test-driven an awful lot of them.

God bless FMLA! This is the Family and Medical
Leave Act which allows you up to 12 weeks of job-protected medical leave
per year. It can be all at once or intermittent leave (the kind you
need for recurring illnesses like migraines and asthma attacks.
"Job-protected" means that your employer cannot fire you for
being out. If you need to be replaced while you're gone, you are
guaranteed an equivalent job when you do return. You sometimes are
asked to refile after every 6 months (since qualification is a
"rolling period.")

Check with your
Personnel department to get your company's forms, etc. You cannot be
denied FMLA coverage, it is your right -- but do your research for your
area. A small employer may be exempted, I don't know for sure.
Be forearmed if you think you may have any problems with your company.

Finding a Good Doctor

Not every doctor is up on the medications
available. Not every doctor is sympathetic to the migraine sufferer,
but the good news is this attitude is changing due to enlightened medical
schools.

Write down any pattern your migraine follows. What
will trigger an attack? Include anxiety, if that does the
trick. Write down every cure you have ever tried and whether it
worked. Include even the bizarre ones: my telling my
pain-in-the-ass doctor that I'd once pounded my head against the wall HARD
because that helped, got her to take me seriously. List all the
medications you regularly take including over the counter medications, any
medical conditions you have (or had), what you eat, your exercise,
etc. No telling what clue may help.

Take this list to your doctor. One of these may
work for you. I switch off between Amerge (1 mg) and Imitrex (50 mg)
-- you can see the dosages aren't equivalent. I started with the
lowest Imitrex dosage, but had to take two tablets a couple of hours
apart. Anyone who has a migraine knows that's too long to
wait. 50 mg of Imitrex kicks in in about 20 minutes (like magic!).
A warning: do not mix these medications together. If you
switch from one to the other, allow 24 hours between.

Imitrex (sumatriptan)

Amerge (naratriptan)

Zomig (zomitriptan)

The advantage of all of these is that I can work and
function normally if I take them soon enough at the start of an
attack. Most kick in quickly. There are nasal sprays of some
which are fastest of all, but which you gotta go somewhere private to
administer. Call me old-fashioned, but snorthing anything in
public is disgusting.

It's a sad fact that most of these run about $9.00 a
tablet. I'm lucky to have an insurance program that allows me to
either fill prescriptions for a $15 co-pay at the local pharmacy or get a
90-day supply from a mail-order pharmacy for $15 bucks per
prescription. Can't beat that! See if you can get mail-order
service. Imitrex and Amerge come 9 to a package, so I always ask my
doctor to write each refill for 18 tablets each time.

This ties in with finding a good doctor. If you
find a doctor prescribing this sort of thing, carefully examine his or her
attitude before following the advice. No matter how much more you
like being stoned than you like having a headache, these will do nothing
for you, your headache or your ability to work or function while having
one. And try to figure out if you have one of those "bad
doctors" whose rule of thumb (especially towards women) is "drug
the bitch and shut her up" -- an utterly loathesome attitude that
should send you packing.

Narcotics -- they kill
pain, but may lay you out flat instead of functional. Once the
dose wears off, the pain of the migraine is right there, bigger than
ever. You may also have a helluva hangover to cope with, too.

Antidepressants -- use
with extreme caution. The side effects of many are worse
than the migraines are. Be especially cautious of Prozac-happy
prescribers. That stuff can land you in the psych ward, so I'm
extra prejudiced against it.

Liquor-- it makes you
sicker and enough alcohol to knock you senseless will also give you a fun
hangover.

Combinations of prescription
drugs -- I once had a prescription for codeine and
valium given me for a back injury. it cured the back and a
simultaneous headache, but also turned me into a banana slug.
And all subsequent doctors I've mentioned this to have said (more or
less) "Jeezus Christ!"

Excedrin Migraine --
this may get me sued, but all this stuff does for me is make the
headache stronger and me utterly, barfing all over the place nauseous.

The first thing you do is get rid of the guilt and
declare firmly to yourself that you are the one you have to take care of
and that there is NO reason for you to feel guilty about taking care of
yourself or about even having a migraine.

A nap kit:I have a "nap kit" at work so I can take a
quickie if I need to. 20 minutes of darkness and solitude do wonders
-- and that's about the same as a coffee break (which you are guaranteed
by law, should you have to get stern and remind someone).

Lying on your side on the floor can be more
comfortable than you think, especially if you use a seat-cushion for a
pillow like I do. it hold my head up and my neck straight so my shoulders don't get
squashed.

Except for the pillow, the kit goes in a miniature
duffle bag I can keep in a drawer:

A pillow: I use a
spare seat cushion off an old sofa. I cover it with a cotton
pillowcase because it's prickly.

A minute minder with a loud,
obnoxious ring. You may have to test drive a few, but be
sure you get something that will wake you. Mine's a cute chrome
chicken and cost $25 but the cheaper ones were inaudible or broke
quickly. I park mine up near my head, under the blanket.

A hard-shell glasses case
if
you need it or a contact lens travel
kit (Boston makes a dandy one with everything in it including a
new case).

Lie down on your side, mask on, and empty your
mind. It takes practice to actually be able to stop feeling guilty
or thinking about work, but you can learn to do it. You're entitled!

A heating padand
a cotton pillowcase
to cover it, because most heating pads are covered in the same sort of
itchy prickly stuff that bedspreads are.

A body pillow -- if you
usually use one. They keep your back from hurting when you lie
on your side. Note.

A regular pillow to use
the usual way and along with the headboard and wall.

A headboard or wall:
Don't laugh. This comes in handy. When you put the heating pad on your forehead, you lie flat on your
back and prop a regular pillow against the headboard on top of
it. It puts just enough weight down on the pad and your forehead
to feel great.

A face mask so you have
total dark. You can also use a folded up
scarf as a blindfold -- it gives you an exotic, kinky
look. Fold them on the bias and they'll stay put better. Face
Mask Notes.

Some of these are definitely not endorsed by the medical
establishment, but I've had success with all of them in the past. In
a pinch, they can't hurt -- but mixing the over the counter drugs should
be done as seldom as possible. Tell your doctor if they work.
There may be a safer alternative.

Food -- based on the idea
that "whatever I have a craving for will make me feel
better." You'll notice most of these are things you can
grab straight out of the refrigerator and shovel into your mouth.
Speed counts!

A whole pint of Hagen Dazs Vanilla Swiss Almond or
Cookies and Cream.

A cup of hot green pea soup heated with ginger in it
and served with a dab of cold butter melting into it.

Eggs -- any style. Scrambled eggs made with
yogurt instead of milk are very good.

Over the counter medicines taken
BEFORE the food:

Two aspirin and two OTC sleeping pills chased down
with a cup of hot soup. (This is probably toxic.)

Sinus headache medicine

Extra Strength Pamprin (or Midol if it doesn't make
you faint like it does me).

Physical weirdnesses -- or maybe not:

A sharp touch -- I find a light, sharp pressure in
the center of my forehead chases the pain. You could tie on a
small rock with a headband or use the forehead piece of one of those
wrap-around-your-glasses style sunglasses.

Another spot that chases pain when touched is high on
my cheekbone -- that's harder to arrange, but one of my old cats used
to come sleep with his paws around my neck and his chin on my cheek
when I had a headache (honest!).

Acupressure -- some people swear by pressing hard on
the fleshy part of your hand between your thumb and forefinger.
All it does for me is hurt, but maybe not for you.